Alfalfa Farm requests wine pouring license

Alfalfa Farm Winery will take its next step to get a wine-pouring permit at Topsfield’s Special Town Meeting on May 7.

The winery had to receive over 100 signatures of registered town voters (they got 260) to appear on the warrant in a citizen’s petition. The question that will be put to voters is whether the selectmen should request a special license from the state allowing the farm to serve wine on the premises of their 267 Rowley Bridge Road location.

Topsfield currently has three alcohol licenses — two of which are spoken for (Gil’s Grocery and Main Street Market) and the third does not fit Alfalfa Farm’s criteria, so the town must petition for a special license.

Alfalfa Farm presently has a farm winery license, which allows it to sell wine by the bottle to be consumed off premises. If granted, the new permit will let the farm sell wine by the glass during their business hours. The winery is open in the summer on Sundays from 1-4 p.m. and in the fall on Saturdays and Sundays from 1-4 p.m., totaling six hours at the most each week.

“The fear some people have is that we might be open every day … it’s definitely not like a bar room,” said owner Richard Adelman. “It’s just a way to sell the wine that we make here.”

Discrepancies on licensing

Last year at Town Meeting the town voted to move forward with a petition to the general court that would allow the Alfalfa Farm a license for the retail sale of wine to be consumed off premises and to provide wine tastings. Adelman objected to the petition once it had gone before the legislature because it didn’t include the ability to sell wine by the glass to drink on the premises.

Selectman Richard Gandt said that although the petition was tabled in legislation, Adelman is currently able to sell wine by the bottle at his store. Adelman said his current license also allows him to offer tastings, but Gandt does not believe he is legally permitted to do so on the premises.

Both parties agreed that Alfalfa Farm has two licenses as of January 1 (licenses must be renewed annually): a farm winery license and a wine-shipping license, though Adelman said the farm does not generally ship wine.

Citizen’s petition to sell glasses of wine

Adelman filed a separate citizen’s petition so that Alfalfa Farm can sell wine by the glass to be drunk on premises.

If Town Meeting approves this warrant article, the selectmen’s petition will go before a new state legislature.

Adelman said that there are many benefits for a town with a farm winery. He explained that the winery is about 300 years old and serves as a historic landmark in town. He also said the farm provides jobs for locals, and that if granted the pouring permit, it may provide even more jobs. Adelman said that a pouring permit would benefit the town by promoting agricultural tourism. He said people want to visit farm wineries, see how the product is made, try samples and buy locally made wine.

Adelman will come before the selectmen on Monday night at Proctor School at 7:30 p.m. to further discuss his petition.